


Gifts

by XingueseEmpress



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist (Anime 2003), Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Alternate Universe - Always a Different Sex, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-17
Updated: 2019-06-17
Packaged: 2020-05-13 06:16:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,493
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19245496
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/XingueseEmpress/pseuds/XingueseEmpress
Summary: Alphonse wonders what he should get Ed for her birthday.





	Gifts

Alphonse Elric watched as his sister trudged out of her superior's office. He was unable to look worried, but he definitely was. She was slightly disheveled, and the bags underneath her eyes made her look older than she was. Her normally bright red coat was tattered and had slight alchemy marks around the seams of her right sleeve, like she'd done a quick patch up on it and never bothered to look twice.

Despite his worry, Al was relieved to see his older sister in one piece after four long days of absence. It wasn't that he didn't trust her to come back safely, it was just that Ed always took her brother on assignments that Colonel Mustang sent her on, and he wasn't used to letting Ed run head first into dangerous situations without Al to back her up. This time, though, she was only permitted to go with Second Lieutenant Havoc because-well, truthfully, Al wasn't allowed to know why. He just had to trust in Havoc to have her back this time.

She went over to the Second Lieutenant's desk. "I gave him the report, now can you file it for me, Havoc?" she asked, thrusting the document towards the man.

He nodded. "Sure thing, Chief," he replied, chewing on an unlit cigarette. "Try to get some rest, 'kay? You look a lot more tired than you did on the train a bit ago. A hard-working girl like you deserves her beauty sleep." He winked.

"Tch," she scoffed tiredly. "I'm gonna need a lot more than beauty sleep after that fiasco. Thanks for the help again, Havoc."

Al looked between the two soldiers, confused about the "fiasco" Ed was talking about. From what he could gather, though, Havoc had managed to save Ed from a sticky situation. But he knew not to ask about it, because if Ed forced him to stay put while she took care of something work-related, then as a civilian, he had no business to know. He still felt like whatever happened deserved thanks from him as well.

"Um, Mr. Havoc?" he said, coming to stand next to his sister. "I don't really know what happened while you and Sister were away, but I'd like to thank you for taking care of her for me." He bowed.

"Don't mention it, kiddo." Havoc smiled. "I was just doin' my job. 'Sides, if I didn't take care of your sister, I'd have hated to answer to you and the Boss. It was a matter of self-preservation."

"You could've just said you're welcome, you know," Ed piped in, crossing her arms. "If I didn't believe that the first time you said it, what makes you think I would now?"

He chuckled and stood up to head to the files. "You make a good point, Chief. Now, don't you think it's about time for you to head back to your dorm?"

"Yeah. See you guys later," she said, addressing the entirety of Mustang's team this time, and was met with a chorus of "good-byes".

When the siblings made it out of the Eastern HQ, they were met with a gust of cool, early morning air. Ed shivered, sighed, and pulled the manila folder that she had been holding to her chest. "Boy, it sure is unusually chilly today," she mumbled with a yawn.

Al glanced her way and noticed, for the first time, the folder in her solid grasp. He immediately knew what she was holding, judging by the way her fingers gripped the paperwork so tightly that it crinkled at the edges, and the look of cold determination in her honey eyes.

He leaned over to whisper. "Sister, is that another lead?"

"Yeah, I'll tell you all about it after we get back to our room," she said.

He nodded and felt a tinge of hope for the millionth time since his soul was bound to that suit of armor all those years ago. If he was able to smile, surely, he would have been doing just that.

When they got to their room, Ed kicked off her shoes and plopped down on her unmade bed. She opened up the file and handed her brother a piece of paper. "Tomorrow, we're going to a small town north of East City called Isparta," she said. "Apparently, the Colonel found out for us that there is a guy there that performs these 'magic tricks' in the streets and makes a fortune off it. I don't know about you, but I think his tricks are alchemical in nature."

Al nodded. "Sounds like a good lead," he said as he looked through the files. At the top-left corner was a picture of a young man with a mischievous smirk and slicked back red hair. He sighed. "I sure hope this is it this time." Ever since he and his sister began this journey, they had been working themselves ragged trying to fix their bodies. Ed was working herself a whole lot more, though. Her work wasn't limited to research on the Philosopher's Stone. Because of her status in the military, she always worked herself even harder as a Dog of the State, and since people in her position weren't always met with respect-no one in the military was, really, but State Alchemists had it worse for their specific purpose; they were human weapons-she wasn't always treated cordially by the people in the places the duo traveled to across Amestris, which made her life a lot harder.

Al could never get physically tired or stressed out from overwork because he lost his body as toll for opening the gate, but Ed could though; at that current moment, she lay on her side with her flesh hand cradling her face. She drifted in and out of sleep, trying to keep herself awake so she could finish explaining more about the lead to Al. She could only manage to say, "Of course. And if it isn't, I promise I won't rest 'till I find that stone and restore you back to your body."

"I believe you, Sister," Al replied softly. He got up and covered the sleeping girl. He spared a glance at the clock on the wall.

Nine in the morning.

She'd wake up in a few hours and start complaining about being hungry. Might as well go get her something to eat, then, the armored boy thought.

As he walked towards the door, he saw the calendar in his peripheral. He gasped when he saw the date on the wall. It was the second of February. They would be leaving for Isparta on her fifteenth birthday, and his poor big sister was too overworked to remember. Al felt bad as well. He was so worried about her returning to him safely these past four days that he forgot about it altogether. The least he could do was get her a small gift to lift her spirits. He hoped she wouldn't mind.

"Maybe I should get Sister a nice jewelry set," Al mumbled to himself, looking at particularly nice necklace/earring set through the window of a store, simply named "Jewelry". He then thought about how reckless his sister was when fighting. The necklace would most likely get yanked from her neck and destroyed, like her coat, and, more importantly, just like her automail. Either that or she would find herself in a dilemma and alchemically alter it to suit her needs.

He shook his head briskly. _Nope, no jewelry_ , he thought.

He thought that maybe a cute outfit would suffice. She could wear it on her days off, instead of all that black she seemed to love so much. On second thought, he recalled the cute floral patterned blouse Hawkeye got Ed for her thirteenth birthday. Ed went out one day and came back home with one of the sleeves torn off, and blood stains on it. Apparently, one of the many enemies the young girl had made throughout the years saw her as she walked to the library and decided to follow her around town. She confronted him about it as soon as she caught on to his game. Needless to say, she beat the guy to a bloody pulp and called the military police to arrest him. If even her clothes were getting ruined on normal days, he didn't want to risk spending money on something nice and just seeing it get destroyed soon after.

Al crossed his arms over his chest plate and sighed, exasperatedly. Why did his sister have to be such a hard person to shop for?

He then thought of how much Ed valued practicality. Maybe he could get her something that she could put to use on the daily. Something that would help her out, but not for fighting or work, so she wouldn't accidentally destroy it within a week of owning it. And if it was nice to look at, that wouldn't hurt either.

"Ah-ha!" he thought aloud. "I know what I'll get her!"

He quickly turned in the direction of the store that stocked the specific item he wanted to buy and made his way there with a determined bounce to his step.

The next morning, Ed and Al got their tickets to Isparta early and as they sat, waiting for the train to leave the station, Ed yawned. "I think I'm gonna try to sleep. I didn't get much last night. Wake me up when we get there."

She began to take off her coat to fold and use as a pillow so she could lean on her brother.

"Sister," Al said, putting his hand on her shoulder to stop her from pulling it off. "Before you go to sleep, I have something to give you."

"Why?"

He pulled a plain, pink gift bag out of his chest plate. He set it in her lap. "Happy birthday."

She looked at the bag quizzically. Alphonse could see the gears moving in his sister's head. She was most likely trying to give him a reason as to why she couldn't accept the gift.

"Just open it, Sis," he said firmly.

She breathed out harshly and stuck her hand in the bag. She raised her eyebrow upon feeling the texture of the gift. Al began feeling anxious about her reaction. He sure hoped she wouldn't yell at him for getting this specific gift. "What in the world is this, Al?" Ed asked as she pulled the item out of the bag.

It was a teddy bear, complete with a bright bow around its neck and button eyes.

Ed opened her mouth and quickly closed it. "Um..." Ed said after a full minute of staring at the toy. "And, what exactly is this for?"

He raised his hands as if the action would protect him from her wrath. She didn't look angry, just reminiscent, but still. He would rather be safe than sorry. "You are always falling asleep on me during train rides, and it looks really uncomfortable, so I figured if I got something soft for you to lean on, you'd like that a lot."

Evelyn looked from her brother to the bear one more time and as she did it, he could see a ghost of a smile forming on her thin lips. She breathed a laugh. "Thanks a lot, little brother," she said, knocking on Al's chest plate. "I like it. It's a very thoughtful gift."

Al felt relieved that she liked the present, and was fine with the reason he gave her. Although, there was another reason why he picked out a stuffed bear instead of a pillow. When they were children, Ed had a collection of toy bears that their father would buy her on her birthday, New Year's, Christmas, and any day between. Her and Hohenheim would spend time after he got her a new one naming it-with the other ones surrounding them to give their input, of course. When he left, the boy remembered her carrying around one of her bears every day, and she would sleep with every single one surrounding her at night. Eventually, when their mother passed away, and Hohenheim didn't show up for the funeral, she removed the stuffed bears from her bed and left them on her dresser. Alphonse thought that she still stayed hopeful that her father would come home; that's why she kept the bears within arm's reach. But when Ed joined the military and decided to burn down their childhood home, she walked throughout the house, spilling gasoline with every step, and when she made it to her bedroom she lingered in front of the dresser. She gazed at the bears with a wistful look in her eyes. Alphonse quietly watched from the doorway as she placed her hand on the oldest bear. It was the one he bought when she was a newborn baby. He quietly observed as she hastily wiped her eyes, and dumped the rest of the liquid on the bears. When she was finished, she whispered, "Maybe I wouldn't have had to do this if you'd have just been there."

Al figured that if he got her something to remind her of the happy times with their dad, she would at least try to forgive him. Judging from the look on her face when she saw the gift, he hoped she was beginning to think of her father in a positive light again.

"You aren't angry?" he inquired. Ed was the kind of girl that was always keeping up with a tough image. Since she was the youngest State Alchemist, and a girl, she was constantly making an effort to make herself seem strong and capable to her superiors, as well as her subordinates, and even civilians. Hugging a teddy bear in public had to be the biggest way for her respect to go down the toilet, but to his surprise, she just held the gift in her lap, and stared out the window.

"No," she said. "What's got you thinking I'm angry?"

"...It's a teddy bear, that's why," Al said slowly.

"I know."

"I just didn't think you were into cute things that much, so to see you fine with my gift is a surprise," he confessed.

She laughed quietly and shook her head, making her long bangs swish around her face. "I was just taken aback by the sudden birthday gift. You know I never remember my birthday. And this," she lifted the bear, "is kind of a weird gift to give to a fourteen-"

"Fifteen," Al corrected.

"Yeah, fifteen year old," she said, pulling it to her chest.

Later, when the girl woke up from her nap, she made sure to let Al know how much better she slept using her new birthday present to cushion her head. Al was glad that after nearly four years of Ed striving to make sure Al was able to get a proper night's rest, he could finally return the favor.


End file.
